Noise levels in hospitals are never conducive to healing but Perth researchers have found noise can be significantly reduced in intensive care units (ICUs) by improvements in acoustic design.
The biggest gains were from reducing noise between patient rooms.
“One of the most significant findings was that by concentrating on noise reduction strategies for the partition walls between patient rooms, transference of noise from room to room can be significantly reduced,” said architect and study co-lead, Dr Emil Jonescu PhD. “Findings showed a significant reduction of 14 decibels with doors between rooms open.”
Jonescu, an Edith Cowan University (ECU) Adjunct Senior Research Fellow, and study co-lead Professor Ed Litton, Director of ICU Research at Fiona Stanley Hospital, said up to 50% of ICU patients experienced sleep disturbance due to noise which could hinder recovery and negatively impact health.
Their study in a 40-bed ICU in Fiona Stanley Hospital investigated impacts of noise on patient sleep quality and clinician performance and provided design recommendations for noise mitigation.
A room acoustics analysis revealed maximum noise levels in the ICU ranged from 60 to 90 A-rated decibels (dB(A), surpassing World Health Organization thresholds for sleep disruption.
Researchers simulated acoustic treatment upgrades using 3D modelling and found room layout and equipment precluded many noise reduction options. These were limited to perimeter surface sound absorption, whereas direct transmission pathways, and volume settings offered potential for more significant noise reductions.
Jonescu said they identified potential for medical equipment designers to consider alarm speakers’ directivity focusing the sound towards sound-absorbing walls and reducing noise exposure toward patients.
“Future research could explore the minimum volume level that machines can operate at where there is no impact to clinicians’ ability to do their work,” he said. “A reduction in volume from the default 100% maximum could have massive impact in reducing overall noise, and it wouldn’t cost anything.”
He said noise, a common problem in all ICUs, was mainly caused by alarms from medical equipment and discussions among clinical staff.
“In the ICU there are a lot of beeps and alarms from machines and some of that can’t be mitigated because of the important information provided for clinicians,” he said. “Our aim was to find the optimal balance of good information flow for clinicians and rest and recovery for patients, and we found some design improvements can be made.”
Litton said sleep disruption was a major issue raised by intensive care patients and problems with sleep often persisted after discharge, causing distress and creating a barrier to recovery.
“Thinking holistically about how we make the experience as comfortable as possible for patients whilst in intensive care is so important,” he said. “This means we need to collaborate broadly, including with design experts, to address the issues that matter for our patients.”
Part of the study investigated health professionals’ perceptions of noise impact on patient sleep and staff duties in the ICU. Staff reported ICU noise negatively impacted their work performance, patient connection and job satisfaction.
“Their biggest concern was the impact to patient sleep quality, however, they also believe a quieter ICU would improve clinicians’ thinking ability,” Jonescu added.
The study involved doctors, academics and industry consultants.
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